The Reading Group will meet at Orchard House at 8pm on Tuesday 28 January to discuss Stephen Hough, Rough Ideas and on Tuesday 10 March to discuss Jodi Piccoult, Small Great Things.

When you arrive at the front entrance to Orchard House dial 47 to be admitted.

During Mass on Sunday 9^th February there will be a brief service of Thanksgiving and Affirmation for the young people baptised within the past 12 months and their families. Refreshments after Mass in the Parish Room. All are welcome to join in and particularly any families in the parish with young children.

A very big “Thank You” to those who donated so generously to the Christmas Flowers. Without the generosity of parishioners such displays would not be possible. At Christmas and Easter we are able to purchase the flowers from the wholesaler which means we can get different and higher quality flowers than from the supermarkets.

The Christmas flowers cost £236.22 and this was covered by your very generous donations. This was with a saving of £60 because we had planned early and were able to avail of the opportunity to pre-order the flowers at a fixed price. Apart from Easter and Christmas the flower arrangers pay for the flowers themselves for the rest of the year. We already know that when we exit the EU the cost of flowers will rise by 13%. Please remember the donation box in the Narthex.

Do we have any members of the congregation who would like to join the Flower Rota? Our number is decreasing and new members would be most welcome indeed. If you have any thoughts or comments please contact Cliona Kear on either 386 3400 or c.m.kear@dunelm.org.uk

Our Ignatian Retreat in Daily Life begins today. The retreat is open to students, parishioners and anyone who wants to deepen their relationship with God. If you want to meet with a prayer guide through the week, please come to the opening meeting after 6.30pm Mass. Everyone is welcome to the evening workshops:

• Monday 20th at 7.00pm: What is Prayer?
• Tuesday 21st at 7.00pm: Recognising and responding
• Wednesday 22nd at 7.30pm: Who are You God, and Who am I?

• Final meeting and soup lunch: Friday 24th at 1.00pm, after Mass.

Cost: £10 – but if this is a problem for you, please speak to Fr Andrew.

This Sunday is Peace Sunday. Pope Francis’ message for the day is entitled Peace as a Journey of Hope: Dialogue, Reconciliation and Ecological Conversion. Read it at http://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en.html

Live Broadcast: Join the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment as they perform ‘The Apple Tree’, featuring soprano Kirsty Hopkins. A fabulous opportunity to introduce 2-5 year olds to the world of orchestral music. Thursday 30^th January at 11am. More details at www.ushaw.org Adults £5, under-16s £1.

Many thanks to all who contributed to the collection for this, and to the children who shook the buckets! We exceeded our target and raised £387.92 in total.